Walter Nessler

'How are you?'

Nessler was born in 1912 in Leipzig, Germany and studied art in Dresden. Although not Jewish, he was one of a radical group of artists whose work was denounced as degenerate by the Nazi Government. He was obliged to work as a commercial artist in order to make a living. Vehemently opposed to the Nazi party, Nessler left for a holiday in England in 1937 with his English wife-to-be, Prudence Ashbee. They had no intention of returning to Germany.

Nessler was arrested in May 1940 when living in Sevenoaks, Kent. He was subsequently taken to Liverpool and then on to Huyton. Nessler spent much of his internment drawing and his monochromatic, black ink landscapes capture the dreariness and monotony of the experience.

In September 1940, Nessler was released from Huyton and allowed to join the Pioneer Corps, which until the general releases of internees began was the only way of escaping the camps.